2009 Maria Leavey Award Finalists

Maria Leavey Tribute

Watch the video tribute to the life and selfless service of Maria Leavey — the quintessential unsung progressive hero who this award honors.

To view this video on YouTube click here. [2]

Award Criteria

The individual who receives the Maria Leavey Award should best embody Maria Leavey's legacy [3] by being:

• A Convener who builds connections among diverse members of the progressive movement, cultivating networks of old and new leaders and activists;
• A Persistent Advocate who overcomes obstacles and marches forward with an enduring commitment and passion for social justice;
• A Selfless Organizer who works behind the scenes without seeking the limelight or credit for his or her efforts, while lending credit to others; and
• An Idea Generator who pushes forward creative new ideas, a strong analysis of important issues, or helps build specific new capacities and infrastructure for the progressive movement.

Our third annual Maria Leavey Tribute Award [4] will be presented at America's Future NOW! [5] The award honors an unsung hero of the progressive movement whose behind-the-scenes work and selfless service has made a major contribution to social justice.

These award finalists were chosen by a panel of activists and people who were close to Maria. The recipient was selected by a majority vote of the members of our online community. The winner will be revealed at the closing of the America's Future NOW! conference in Washington. Below are statements submitted by the nominators and quotes from the finalists.

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JUDITH BARRICELLA
I'm surprised and humbled by this recognition. I never expect things for me. I just hope the work I do helps the people I work with.	Judy Barricella has devoted her life to challenging and knocking down the barriers that confront persons with physical disabilities. As Manager of the Allegheny Link to Aging and Disability Resources, a one-stop resource center she lobbied to create, she streamlines consumer access to education, services and supports. Judy founded the first independent living center in Southwestern Pennsylvania; organized a consumer advocacy network; and co-lead successful efforts to pass state legislation to enable people with physical disabilities to act with self-determination regarding housing, supports, education and employment. Having contracted polio at age four, Judy’s nominator writes that she has never stopped working “to empower others like her—vital, capable and energetic individuals—to reach for and achieve their goals. …She continues to speak truth to decision makers about the still-resistant barriers of accessible housing and gainful employment facing persons with disabilities. In her, the community of nearly one-fifth of Allegheny County’s population has a devoted champion.”

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BOB CRITTENDEN
I watched people die in front of me - people who were working and had little or no insurance. How could I not do everything I could to reform health care?	As co-founder and Executive Director of the Herndon Alliance, Dr. Bob Crittenden works behind-the-scenes to keep health care reform at the top of the progressive agenda. The Herndon Alliance is a coalition of 200 national and state organizations that coordinates communications activities in the fight for affordable health care for all. Under Bob’s leadership, the organization has evolved into one of the most sought-after groups for communications and research to reframe the debate and expand its base of support. Bob’s nominator credits Herndon’s success to his “inclusive style at coalition building and visionary outlook.” As a longtime advocate for health care reform in Washington State, Bob helped develop, pass and set up the Basic Health Plan in the 1980s and wrote the health reform legislation that passed in the 1990s. “Dr. Bob has served his community and patients for the past 40 years as an outstanding and selfless family physician. He is truly beloved by his patients as well as those that work with him. Bob is a big thinker, generous organizer and spirited doer.”

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MARILYN FOWLER
I helped to 'take America back' on the ground and on the Internet. But democracy is not enough. We need genuine gender, social, health and environmental justice. So our job is not finished yet!	As founder and CEO of Women’s Intercultural Network (WIN), Marilyn Fowler is currently organizing the 5th United Nations Conference on Women. Her lifetime of community organizing work is local and global, from convening the largest state women’s action network, California Women’s Agenda (CAWA), to giving marginalized women a voice in Uganda, Afghanistan, Japan and the Philippines. Marilyn organizes both on the ground and online, convening progressive web networks that amplify women’s voices. This year already, Marilyn has met with Obama administration delegates regarding a new White House Council on Women and Girls; recorded testimonies of farm workers and indigenous women in California’s Central Valley; and organized a diverse panel of grassroots organizers for the U.N. Commission on Women. In 2008, Marilyn underwent treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, never pausing, “because it was the election year to ‘Take Back America.’” Her nominator writes: “She survived with humor and continuing passion for her work. [Marilyn is the] quintessential unsung progressive heroine, [an] organizer with an extraordinary record and ability to connect.”

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MARGARIDA JORGE
I was taught that good organizers are invisible; our job is to create experiences that resonate in people's hearts, that inspire people to take action and that teach regular people how to transform their lives, their neighborhoods and their country one day at a time.	At Health Care for America NOW!, Margarida Jorge fights at the grassroots level for the federal change needed to guarantee quality, affordable health care for all. Described as a “true force of nature” when it comes to organizing, she helped transform HCAN’s grassroots network into a powerful field operation of more than 120 organizers and coalitions in 44 states—all with a common goal. In April, when more than 15,000 people at more than 100 events greeted their members of Congress to demand action on health care reform, Margarida’s nominator says she was the force behind the unprecedented mobilization. Her nominator writes: “Margarida is a relationship builder, a driver, a leader—and a listener. She works behind the scenes (though never quietly). She’s always the driver, but never the star of the show. She resists taking credit and would rather tell stories about the workers and leaders that helped shaper her as an organizer than talk about herself.”

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MERRILEE MILSTEIN
I will help, teach and work with unions and social justice organizations and their leaders to effectively work through conflict, honor individual contribution, value open communication, provide honest feedback and engage in strategic decision making...	Merrilee Milstein became an activist in 1973 when she joined the union staff of District 1199 while working as a waitress in Connecticut. In her 23 years with the union, she led several successful strikes against hospitals and nursing homes and continually fought for more health care funding in the state budget. She rose to become vice president of 1199 for New England. She later founded LEAP, the Legislative Electoral Action Program, a statewide coalition that elected many progressive candidates and became a model for the nation. Merrilee died last year of cancer at the age of 61 at her home in Hartford. Her nominator writes that she “never sought credit or the limelight for what she did. … Whether it was leading a nursing home strike, or building LEAP, or … fighting for women's equality in law and in the labor movement, or helping organizations come together to overcome differences, Merrilee could be counted on to work tirelessly, empathetically, and effectively to make good things happen…. always making one more call, one more house visit, one more voter registration effort.”

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GRACIELA SANCHEZ
I work for social justice because in my barrio, throughout the U.S. and around the world, forces of violence and greed threaten the lives and dignity of women, of working people, of queers, of the old and the young.	Graciela Sanchez has been active in the progressive movement for more than 20 years as the director of the Esperanza Peace & Justice Center in San Antonio. She’s described as a person with a unique knack for bringing people together across racial, ethnic, gender and sexual orientation lines. Under Graciela’s leadership, the Esperanza Center has become the gathering place for social justice advocates in the labor, immigration, gay and lesbian rights, health care and environmental movements. She is currently leading her center in a federal lawsuit against a city ordinance that Graciela says impinges on the free speech of San Antonio residents. The law allows the city to charge some community groups up to $15,000 to march on public streets, while others march for free. Her nominator writes that Graciela is a humble and relentless advocate, “very committed to the values of social justice, especially those who have traditionally borne the weight of injustice. I highly recommend this unique and courageous woman.”